Where Kentucky targets are visiting this weekend
After wrapping up the camp circuit on Wednesday, things are not going to slow down for the Kentucky football staff in June. For the second weekend in a row, the Wildcats will have a huge official visit weekend with at least four expected visitors.
KSR will have a full preview for that on Friday, but sometimes the most important information can come from what is happening at other places. The Wildcats will have a few major targets checking out other programs this weekend as this recruiting cycle develops.
Your recruiting department at Kentucky Sports Radio is here to keep you informed and up to speed as things develop on the recruiting trail.
The targets
Ja’Keem Jackson — Following an official visit to Auburn, Jackson came up to Lexington for a two-day unofficial visit this week as Chris Collins is attempting to make some noise in Central Florida. However, the three-star prospect is hitting the road again this weekend.
Jackson will be making a trip to Penn State for an official visit that begins on Friday and then will make a trip to Tennessee on June 24. Florida is also involved here. A heated recruitment has many contenders as this battle is a long way from over.
Koby Keenum — The three-star offensive line prospect that Kentucky likes at center is making another trip north to the Bluegrass State. The Alabama native will be heading to the Derby City for an official visit to Louisville as Scott Satterfield’s program hosts their biggest recruiting weekend in June.
Keenum visited Louisville when the Cardinals hosted Syracuse back in November and is now making a return trip. Former Louisville offensive line coach Jack Bicknell Jr. has moved to North Carolina and is still recruiting the prospect. Meanwhile, Ole Miss and Mississippi State also made the top five for this prospect.
As of now, this seems to be a two-school battle. Getting through this weekend without a commitment to Louisville by Keenum would be a win for Kentucky.
Jermaine Matthews — The Cincinnati (Ohio) Winton Woods cornerback is starting to catch some major attention as the 2023 recruit is now a four-star prospect in the On3 Consensus. Matthews earned an Ohio State offer at a camp on June 1 and is returning to Columbus on Friday for an official visit.
It is probably a safe assumption to put Matthews on commitment watch this weekend. After taking an official visit to Cincinnati, the cornerback has another visit scheduled with Pittsburgh on June 24, but this recruitment may wrap up soon. After Cameron Calhoun completed a flip from West Virginia to Cincinnati on Tuesday, Kentucky could miss out on both Winton Woods targets as the Wildcats currently do not have another visit scheduled with either 2023 prospect.
Robert Stafford — The top-200 recruit out of Melbourne (Fla.) Eau Gallie took a trip to Kentucky last weekend as secondary coach Chris Collins looked to make a move for the Wildcats. Now Stafford will head to the Pac-12.
New head coach Dan Lanning is looking to keep a similar blueprint used by Mario Cristobal in Eugene by recruiting nationally. Stafford is heading to Oregon for a big weekend, but it appears that the Ducks have some ground to make up. Trips to Miami and Arkansas still await the blue-chip corner as this recruitment is far from over.
Sean Thompkins — The Newton (Ga.) High offensive tackle is currently unranked, but that won’t be for long. After visiting Baylor last weekend and taking a mid-week official visit to Kentucky, the under-the-radar prospect will be heading to Florida this weekend.
Thompkins does not do interviews and has a private Twitter account so there is not much out there on this recruitment. We’ll have to see if any intel comes out of Gainesville after the weekend.
Jalen Thompson — The Detroit (Mich.) Cass Tech defensive lineman is a top-250 recruit, and some big schools are after the No. 2 player in Michigan.
After an official visit to Cincinnati last week, Thompson will be headed to Penn State this weekend and will then make a trip to Michigan State to end June. However, Thompson also earned an Ohio State offer at a camp in June, and that changed things.
Kentucky has some ground to make up here.
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